Sunday, November 9, 2014

Both the zenith and twilight of the full dress
uniforms of the regiments of the British Army occurred at the turn of the
twentieth century, shortly before the First World War. There may be differences
of opinion as to which regiment/regiments had the most resplendent uniform, but
few will disagree that those of the Lancer regiments, particularly including those of the
British Army in India, and the Highland Regiments of the British Army, were
certainly ranked in contention.

With the general mobilization for war occurring in August of 1914, the full dress uniforms for the majority of the regiments of the British Army were turned into depots and stores. These uniforms were never to be generally issued again. Full dress for officers was never officially abolished, with new Dress Regulations actually issued in 1934, full dress was never again taken up for general use. One of the finest, and most comprehensive references of the final full dress uniforms is "THEIR GLORY SHALL NOT BE BLOTTED OUT" The Last Full Dress Uniform of the British Army, LtCol Olaf MacLeod, Lutterworth Press, Cambridge, 1986, ISBN 0-7188-2673-6.

Being of Scottish ancestry, one of the near
lifelong projects of my continuing interest in the history of the British Army has
been the acquisition of the complete full dress uniform of an officer of the 92nd
Gordon Highlanders of that era. It was a challenge started as a college
student/NROTC Midshipman around 1954, and only culminated after my retirement
in 2002, a span of almost fifty years. It’s interesting how in your life it seems like some things are meant
to be, and that was to be the case in this quest. During the period I had the
good fortune to find various significant elements and accouterments, some
major, others less so. I had acquired a reasonable reference library over time,
but one research “tool” surpassed all others, and that was the Internet.

I’m certainly not going to bore the reader with
the details of the effort, but gained a whole new respect for the young newly
commissioned ensign/2nd Lieutenant of the Gordons in purchasing his
full dress uniform, let alone the balance of required kit. Even if they came
from nobility or landed gentry, it was still a real “ouch” to the
sporran, and probably took years to pay off. At least at that time there were
well established “crown appointed” regimental tailors/outfitters which provided “one
stop shopping” for the entire kit.

One exercise I undertook during the course of
my efforts was to develop an analysis of Then and Now, delineating all the
items required per British Army Dress Regulations 1900.

COST
IN CURRENT POUNDS STERLING AND US DOLLARS (2009) - £.1980.55 ~ $2787.92

ACQUISITION
COST OF SAME ITEMS (OR EQUIVALENT) FOR THE COLLECTION

$
USD

Doublet
450.00

Gold
Cord Shoulder
Straps (Incl.)

Silver
Embroidered
Stars (Incl.)

Silver
Embroidered
Crowns (Incl.)

Gold
Embroidered Collar
Badges (Incl.)

Parade
Trews70.00

Kilt
396.00

Belted
Plaid 75.00

Sash
60.00

Sporran
Strap 15.00

Cross
Belt and Sling (with
breastplate) 661.00

Gold
Dirk Belt (with
buckle) 225.00

Half
Hose 5.00

White
Cotton Uniform Gloves
8.00

Sub Total $1965.00

ADDITIONAL
REQUIRED DRESS UNIFORM ITEMSNOT
INCLUDED ABOVE:

Sword, Highland Officers, Pattern
18312,500.00

w/Metal Scabbard

Skean Dhub w/scabbard (Sterling)627.00

Scottish Dirk, Regimental Pattern,
w/scabbard375.00

Sporran, Full Dress, Officers,
Regimental475.00

Pattern

Bonnet, Feathered, Highland, Full Dress,425.00

Regimental Pattern, W/Regimental Cap
Badge275.00

Brooch, Plait, Regimental Pattern 194.00

Ghillie Brougues, Military Pattern80.00

Gaiters, Highland, No.1 Dress, White
Drill75.00

Gaiter Flashes, Highland, Red Wool25.00

Kilt Pin 5.00

Sub Total $5056.00

GRAND TOTAL $7021.00

Occasionally am certain that those who might be
seriously interested in pursuing a similar quest have seen a reasonably complete
highland officer’s uniform at auction at Bosley’s, Christie’s, or the other
specialized auction houses. For the vast majority the single time
outlay/investment of even bidding, let alone winning, is prohibitive. The
following is a series of photographs of one such rare example that came up at
an estate auction, at of all unlikely places Jacksons, in Cedar Falls, Iowa, in
2010. The estimated bid range was $800-1200 USD. At that price the uniform would have been an absolute steal!

A BRITISH (SCOTTISH) UNIFORM OF A
LIEUTENANT OF THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS, first quarter of the 20th century. This
very complete group include an black feather bonnet with diced band, silvered
badge and white feather plume. Doublet of red wool with buff collar and cuffs,
piped white, with gold bullion braid and regimental collar insignia, and with
gold cord shoulder boards with rank insignia. Wool kilt is in regimental
tartan, Also includes wool plaid of slightly different tartan than the kilt,
with a silver regimental badge. Accoutrements consist of a white horsehair
sporran with brass clasp and silver badge, and gold tassels. Gold brocade sword
belt with regimental plate and a white buff leather baldric also with
regimental plate.

Although the final complete uniform is comprised as a composite "mix and match", or as the Scots call it a "Gallimaufry"(a hash of odds and ends) from over the decades, and of necessity some museum quality reproductions, the overall effect is reasonably impressive. A note to eagle-eyed experts, the photograph was taken prior to the upgrade to the correct officer's bonnet hackle. Some may have even seen images of "Lieutenant-Colonel Angus Smyth-Gordon MC" on the Internet.

A current set of closer images better showing some of the detail, and the correct plume in the bonnet.

And a final commemorative glance at the Drums and Pipes (more accurately one regimental side drum and one set of bagpipes) of the 92nd Gordon Highlanders.